Compare Revisions

11 Trade Goods are sealed shipping crates that function as the archipelago's intended-for-sale cargo system. Each crate is tagged with a buyer faction in its tooltip, and that faction's Trade Goods Merchant on Tortuga pays a better price than anyone else. Smuggling the crate to the wrong buyer either halves the payout or refuses the trade altogether.
22  
33 Every crate's flavor text carries the same warning, scratched into the wood with a nail: "Open it and you're out of the cut." Crates destroyed or opened before delivery lose all trade value, so captains move them unopened from loot source to buyer.
44  
55 Buyer Factions and Payouts
66  
77 Values below are the sale price per crate at the preferred faction's Trade Goods Merchant, verified against the in-game item database.
88  
99 ImageCrateRarityPreferred BuyerBest PriceContrabandRareSmugglers of Port Royal150 PiastreLuxuriesEpicSmugglers of Port Royal250 PiastreMedicineRarePeople of Tortuga100 PiastreMunitionsRareRogue Buccaneers200 PiastreNaval SuppliesRareBrethren of the Coast150 PiastreProvisionsUncommonPeople of Tortuga50 PiastreSpecialized ToolsEpicBrethren of the Coast250 PiastreSpiritsUncommonRogue Buccaneers100 Piastre
1010 Every other Trade Goods Merchant on Tortuga will still accept the crate, but pays roughly the standard 100 Piastre rate regardless of rarity. Delivering to the preferred faction is worth the extra sailing time for the Epic-tier crates (Luxuries, Specialized Tools) where the spread is largest.
1111  
1212 Packed Commodities
1313  
1414 Four packed crates carry raw materials and sell for flat Piastre sums to any trader. Unlike the faction crates, they have no preferred buyer.
1515  
1616 ImagePacked CrateRarityContentsPacked WoodCommonBundled raw wood.Packed HardwoodUncommonBundled hardwood planks.Packed Copper IngotsUncommonCopper ingots ready for shipment.Packed Iron IngotsRareIron ingots ready for shipment.
1717 How to Obtain
1818  
1919 Loot from faction-aligned ship wrecks and boarding engagements. A sunk Buccaneer sloop tends to drop Munitions or Spirits; a Brethren warship drops Naval Supplies or Specialized Tools.Seized during port raids on rival faction outposts.Purchased cheaply from one faction and resold to the crate's preferred buyer for a small arbitrage profit.
2020  
2121 Tips
2222  
2323 Crate stack size is 3, so a small cargo hold can move a handful of Epic crates at once for a quick 500 to 750 Piastre run.Check the tooltip before sailing. Delivering a crate labeled for Buccaneers to the Smugglers booth will leave Piastre on the table.Crates are legitimate cargo. They do not count as stolen goods and can be carried in open ports without reputation penalty.
2424  
2525 See Also
2626  
2727 FactionsFaction ReputationTortuga
2828  
2929 Finding Faction Bases
3030  
3131 Trade Goods only pay out at the correct faction's home base, not at the Tortuga market hub. Since each save generates islands differently, there are no fixed coordinates for any faction base. The reliable approach is to follow the questline attached to each faction, which always marks the base on the world map the first time the player approaches it.
3232  
3333 Smugglers of Port Royal: the Underground Network questline introduces the Smugglers' hidden coastal cave and unlocks their Trade Goods Merchant.Buccaneers: the Rogue Buccaneers Main Base is uncovered during the main-story sequence that escorts the player toward the Buccaneer camp. Bringing trophy heads during that step doubles as the introduction to the buyer NPC.Brethren of the Coast: the Brethren base is revealed through a mix of sailing discovery and faction-quest markers. Charting uncharted water past the second biome usually reveals the icon within a handful of sailing trips.Tortuga People of Tortuga: the People of Tortuga keep a separate faction base distinct from the main Tortuga market hub. The quest marker from their introductory contract points directly at it once accepted.
3434  
3535 Delivering a crate to the right buyer produces the payouts listed in the earlier table. Other Trade Goods Merchants at Tortuga still accept the crate but default to roughly the 100 Piastre baseline regardless of rarity, which is why the Epic-tier crates, Luxuries and Specialized Tools, repay the extra sailing time most clearly.
3636  
3737 Secondary Trophy and Salvage Buyers
3838  
3939 A few non-crate loot items still have clear preferred buyers. These items do not stack with the main faction crates and come from hunts and shipwreck scavenging rather than boarding or port raiding, but they route to the same faction hubs for sale.
4040  
4141 ImageItemPreferred BuyerWhere FoundCrocodile HeadBuccaneersHunted from Crocodile kills in swamp and coastal biomesDodo HeadBuccaneersHunted from Dodo kills on beaches and coastal flatsCrab ShellBuccaneersHarvested from crab kills along the shorelineSilver SpoonsSmugglers of Port RoyalRuin chests and shipwreck lootSilver IngotSmugglers of Port RoyalBuried treasure and late-game cave loot
4242 Since trophy items travel outside the crate stacking limit, they are best gathered during dedicated hunting runs rather than smuggling sweeps. A cargo trip that mixes crates with trophy heads tends to overfill the hold before either source is properly optimized; keeping the two loops separate returns more total Piastre per trip.
4343  
4444 Reputation Items Versus Trade Goods
4545  
4646 Not every drop labeled as faction loot is a trade good. Reputation items like 
4747  
4848 Insignias: turn in at each faction's Bounty Agent, not a Trade Goods Merchant.Letters of Favor: higher-tier reputation rewards, also handled by the Bounty Agent.
4949  
5050 The Bounty Agent and the Trade Goods Merchant can both sit inside the same faction base, which is why these items are easy to confuse at first. Check the item tooltip before handing anything in. Reputation items increase faction rank and unlock higher-tier shop stock, while Trade Goods pay Piastre and do not affect reputation at all.
5151  
5252 Faction Provisioner Inventory
5353  
5454 The Trade Goods system handles what factions buy from you. The other half of the faction economy is what each faction's Provisioner sells back. Every Provisioner stocks its own slate of Piastre priced consumables and plans, plus a smaller Guinea-priced tier of cosmetic and base-building content. Stock rotates behind Faction Reputation rank gates, so higher-ranked items only appear once the Bounty Agent hand-ins push the player past the corresponding threshold.
5555  
5656 Rogue Buccaneers Provisioner
5757  
5858 The Rogue Buccaneers Provisioner leans agility armor, heavy cannon schematics, and outdoor structural sets. Cannon plans cover the 12, 24, and 36 pounder lines, each offered in three modifier variants (tempered, perfectly ordered, and devastating).
5959  
6060 ItemCostMaster's Tools10 PiastreMerchant Contract: Animal Products100 PiastrePlans: Flibustier's Jacket / Pants200 Piastre eachPlans: Tracker's Jacket / Pants200 Piastre eachPlans: 12-Pounder cannon (tempered, perfectly ordered, or devastating)300 Piastre eachPlans: 24-Pounder cannon (tempered, perfectly ordered, or devastating)400 Piastre eachPlans: 36-Pounder cannon (tempered, perfectly ordered, or devastating)500 Piastre eachPlans: Clay and Logs base set10 GuineaPlans: Weathered Pillars and Fences20 GuineaPlans: Reed Roofs and ClayWalls20 GuineaDecor: Hunter's Furnishings30 GuineaStyle Book: Buccaneers Flag Designs10 Guinea
6161 People of Tortuga Provisioner
6262  
6363 The Tortuga People Provisioner focuses on ranged and critical-hit armor (Privateer and Marksman sets) and a luxury tier of interior base-building plans. Players building out a permanent home base tend to return here for columns, stairs, tile roofs, and elegant furniture rather than for combat gear.
6464  
6565 ImageItemCostSewing Tools10 PiastreMerchant Contract: Food100 PiastreMerchant Contract: Natural Resources100 PiastrePlans: Privateer's Coat / Pants200 Piastre eachPlans: Marksman's Doublet / Pants200 Piastre eachPlans: Marble, Plaster, and Tile base set10 GuineaPlans: Columns and Arches20 GuineaPlans: Tile Roofs Extras20 GuineaPlans: Elegant Stained Glass Doors and Windows20 GuineaPlans: Mahogany Staircases and Railings20 GuineaPlans: Luxurious Seating30 GuineaPlans: Mahogany Tables and Cabinets30 GuineaPlans: Elegant Cabinets30 GuineaPlans: Elegant Curtains and Shelves30 Guinea
6666 Brethren of the Coast Provisioner
6767  
6868 The Brethren of the Coast Provisioner handles the shipping side of the market: consumable trade goods bought cheaply in bulk, plus the largest selection of ship-cosmetic Style Books in Tortuga. The vessel design blueprints sold here are covered on the Brethren of the Coast page rather than inlined below, because their price and reputation-rank gating are still being confirmed against current in-game vendor prices.
6969  
7070 ItemCostSalt2 PiastreCoffee Beans3 PiastreShipwright's Tools10 PiastreSteel Nails10 PiastreWhiskey10 PiastreMadeira10 PiastreBrandy10 PiastreStyle Book: Privateer Flag Designs10 GuineaStyle Book: Brethren Flag Designs10 GuineaStyle Book: Stock Hull Colors30 GuineaStyle Book: Brethren Hull Colors30 GuineaStyle Book: Stock Sails Colors30 GuineaStyle Book: Sails Colors30 Guinea
7171 The consumable rows (salt, coffee beans, the four spirit rows) double as Brethren-preferred trade crate ingredients and as cheap flip stock: buy at 2 to 10 Piastre here, then resell the matched crate to another faction's Trade Goods Merchant at Tortuga for a modest Piastre margin.
7272  
7373 Smugglers of Port Royal Provisioner
7474  
7575 The Smugglers of Port Royal Provisioner fills the gap the other three faction vendors leave open: heavy plate armor, Hull Bracing plans, the complete Naval Tactics catalog, and Smithing Flux. The inventory is gated behind the Smugglers' reputation ranks, so higher-tier hull plans and the later Naval Tactics (III through V) only appear once the bounty-agent hand-ins push the player past each rank threshold.
7676  
7777 ImageItemCostSmithing Flux10 PiastrePlans: Conquistador's Cuirass / Pants200 Piastre eachPlans: Pikeman's Cuirass / Pants200 Piastre eachPlans: Keelhold Hull Bracing300 PiastrePlans: Iron Resolve Hull Bracing300 PiastrePlans: Standfast Hull Bracing500 PiastreNaval Tactics I: Ambush500 PiastreNaval Tactics II: No Quarter500 PiastreNaval Tactics III: Stretch the Supply500 PiastreNaval Tactics IV: Shipshape500 PiastreNaval Tactics V: Silence the Guns500 PiastrePlans: Stone and Planks base set10 GuineaPlans: Timber Pillars, Beams, and Fences20 GuineaPlans: Straw Roof and Triangular Walls20 GuineaDecorations: Luxurious Fireplace30 GuineaDecorations: Fountains and Planters30 GuineaDecorations: Elegant Iron Utensils30 GuineaStyle Book: Smugglers Flag Designs10 Guinea
7878 The Smugglers Provisioner is also the only vendor in the game that runs a currency exchange between Piastres and Guineas. One Guinea costs 50 Piastre at the stall; the reverse conversion pays 1 Guinea for every 20 Piastre handed in, which is the unfavorable rate the Smugglers' flavor text warns about. Building reputation with the Smugglers does not improve the rate, so the exchange is most useful as a one-time top-up when a specific Guinea-priced blueprint is one purchase away.
7979  
8080 Additional Trophy and Consumable Buyer Rows
8181  
8282 The Secondary Trophy and Salvage Buyers section above lists the headline trophy items, but several other animal heads and ship-repair consumables also have a single preferred buyer that pays a flat per-unit Piastre rate. Hauling them to the wrong faction either nets the standard reduced rate or the buyer refuses the trade outright, so it is worth knowing the routing before a long inventory clear-out at base.
8383  
8484 ImageItemPreferred BuyerWhere FoundPriceBoar HeadRogue BuccaneersHunted from Boar kills in jungle and foothill biomes20 PiastreWolf HeadRogue BuccaneersHunted from Wolf packs across mid-tier islands30 PiastreMountain Goat HeadRogue BuccaneersHunted from Mountain Goats in foothill cliff terrain30 PiastreCombat Repair KitBrethren of the CoastLooted from Sea Combat or crafted at the Shipwright's Workshop10 PiastreMaster Combat Repair KitBrethren of the CoastLooted from higher-tier Sea Combat or crafted at the Shipwright's Workshop30 Piastre
8585 How the Animal Heads Route
8686  
8787 All animal-head trophies route to the Rogue Buccaneers. Boar, Wolf, and Mountain Goat heads sell alongside Crocodile, Dodo, and Crab trophies at the Rogue Buccaneers Main Base buyer, not at any Tortuga waterfront stall. The Buccaneers are the hunting-and-skinning faction in the economy split, and their buyer is the only one in the game who pays a per-unit price for animal-head trophies rather than treating them as bulk vendor trash. Mixing a hunting trip with a Buccaneers cargo run is the standard way to maximize the haul value, since the same boat trip drops both the named trade crates and the loose trophy heads at one stop.
8888  
8989 Co-op tip. If a co-op pair is splitting hunting and trade-route work, the trophy hauler can run a faster Foothills loop (boar, wolf, goat) while the cargo hauler stockpiles Munitions and Spirits crates, then both empty their inventories at the Buccaneers buyer in the same docking. Both income streams sell to the same buyer NPC, so there is no need for a separate vendor stop.
9090  
9191 Why the Repair Kits Route to Brethren
9292  
9393 Combat Repair Kits and their Master tier sell to the Brethren of the Coast buyer. The kits are recovered from Sea Combat loot drops or crafted at the Shipwright's Workshop, and the Brethren are the naval-progression faction whose entire faction-quest line revolves around hull damage and repair. Their buyer is therefore the natural offload for any kit you produce or loot but do not need yourself; the per-unit Piastre rate is small but the kits stack tightly and add up over a long boarding-action haul.
9494  
9595 Stocking decision. Keep one stack of Combat Repair Kits in your ship's hold for emergency in-combat repairs (each kit restores a chunk of hull from inventory rather than from a base station). Sell the remainder. The Master Combat Repair Kit is worth holding two or three of for harder Blackbeard fleet engagements, where the chip damage between waves can otherwise force a return to a friendly port mid-quest. Anything beyond a small reserve is reliably converted to Piastre at the Brethren buyer with no opportunity cost.
9696  
9797 What This Section Does Not Cover
9898  
9999 These rows are explicit additions to the Secondary Trophy and Salvage Buyers list above and do not affect the eight named trade crates (Contraband, Luxuries, Medicine, Munitions, Naval Supplies, Provisions, Specialized Tools, Spirits). Crate prices are still the verified per-faction values in the main Trade Goods table; the rows here are loose trophy and consumable items that travel outside the crate-stacking limit and need their own buyer-routing reference.
100100  
101101 Reputation note. Selling these trophies and kits earns Piastre but does not raise faction reputation. Reputation items (Insignias, Letters of Favor) are still handled by each faction's Bounty Agent, not by the buyer NPC. Do not confuse a high-Piastre haul with a high-reputation rank; they are two parallel systems that share a faction camp but route through different counters.